Sunday, April 11, 2010

MY VISIT TO WONDERLAND

Alice in Wonderland rocks it no matter what some of you might say.

There were definitely some really high expectations for this movie. And after the movie's release, there were mixed reviews regarding the film. Some had said that the movie has been a disappointment, but there were also some who loved it.

Bagging these comments, I went in the cinema with low expectations and I actually think that it is not bad at all.

I watched "Alice in Wonderland" almost 2 weeks back. I just didn't manage to find any time to blog about it and right now, I'm just hoping that my memory will serve me for this post.

The most amazing thing about the film is really not the storyline because the main structure of the Alice in Wonderland story has been used before. But one can't deny the fact that we are also anticipating the scene where Alice shrink and then enlarged again.

I've never read or watched "Alice in Wonderland" before but I generally know its story and I believe that Tim Burton's "Alice in Wonderland" is actually something super creative that rides on the original version of "Alice In Wonderland". He brings to life a more grown up Alice - he presents us a story whereby imagination comes to life. I thought the movie is brilliant because it is colourful and very imaginative. It brings you outta this world - another true Tim Burton masterpiece - fun & quirky with a mysterious touch.

One of my favourite Tim Burton movies is "Charlie and The Chocolate Factory". I love how Tim Burton paints with so many colours and creates lively atmospheres with sounds and music, making the book by Roald Dahl even livelier and, I must say, better. I love that Tim Burton had added some moral values towards the end of the movie, something the book doesn't carry.

Tim Burton did the same for "Alice in Wonderland", creating vibrant and interesting characters that can alone keep you entertained. I found myself constantly wondering what will happen next in the movie; I guess you can say that it is ironic that such a predictable storyline ended up being so unpredictable, but Burton did so!

If you ask me what makes the film brilliant, it is the characters and the creativity of the concept and production design of the underworld. The whole setting of the movie is colourful and vibrant, and it attracts us to it. The story, though simple, has some sort of magical element that gets one glued and anticipating the adventures that awaits. Colours always help!

Every element in the movie comes as a surprise, but still in many ways faithful to the classic storyline. But I love how Burton had enhanced the story with more than just senseless jabberwocky (nonsense, meaningless and of no value), although, 'Jabberwocky' is part of the theme. Burton incorporated a few good values/messages in the film.

"Believe in the impossible"

Alice never thought that it's possible to kill the Jabberwocky monster but then she remembers what her father told her that he thinks of 6 impossible things before breakfast. Sometimes, nothing is impossible.

"Do not let others decide who you are & just be yourself"

Alice is different from other girls because she has bigger dreams. Later we see her stepping up and taking over her father's business and continue on to believe in achieving what is claimed impossible.

After watching Alice In Wonderland, I am even more amazed with Tim Burton's creativity - how he brought in the Jabberwocky element into the story is brilliant!

On top of that, I think credits have definitely got to be given to Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter and Anne Hathaway for brilliantly portraying in their own ways those magnificent characters in the film.

Johnny Depp is made for the role Mad Hatter, or rather, he made Mad Hatter his. Johnny Depp playing Mad Hatter is just another testament of his ability to take on different roles in films. He was amazing as this weird, almost lunatic character - somewhat like Willy Wonka but a tad more colourful, literally. He also perfectly delivered his last scene, persuading Alice to stay because that scene melted my heart. If I were Alice, I could have stayed because of that.

Helena Bonham Carter was also excellent as the Red Queen. The Red Queen is evil but she has her own insecurities, because of her big head. And in Alice in Wonderland, even the evil characters have to be to a certain extent endearing because it is a feel good story. I think Helena Bonham Carter managed to make the character lovable, despite evil.

And Anne Hathaway was fantastic as the White Queen. I didn't know she was in the movie so it was a surprise seeing her. But I really love her portrayal as the White Queen - she's bouncy and elegant at the same time. She is cheeky in some ways - though a protagonist, she managed to slit in a bit of mischievous characteristic in her character. For example, she has that childishness in her where she still laughs about her sisters big head - so I find her super cute. I mean, one would imagine Queen as someone who is super serious and powerful but Anne made White Queen one that has a child-like character, but yet, has that quality of an elegant queen.

The new girl who plays Alice was a disappointment for me because I find her actually quite wooden in her acting. Hmmm...but I got some feedback saying that it is her character to be looking disturbed and weird like that, because she is Alice, a little girl who is different from the rest. Oh well, I can't really judge her from her first performance but I still find her acting not up to par. Perhaps she'll be able to convince me the next time in her next film, if she actually stars in any more films.

If you are a person into graphics and colours and art, you'll be amazed by the wonders of Alice in Wonderland. You'll be mesmerized by Red Queen's castle and all the heart shaped decorations that fill the place; you'll be awed by the glitters of the White Queen's residence; you'll be tickled by the cute rabbits and other worldly animals that are creatively engineered to look magically.

But if you dislike colours and happy magical tales that takes you outta this world, you might then really hate Alice in Wonderland. You cannot judge "Alice in Wonderland" in terms of storyline because it is a story that most of us are familiar with. When watching this movie, I think it's best to judge how creative Burton can be by bringing these characters into life and how he colours them with his own touch.

Children will definitely enjoy this one because it is very magical and imaginative. If your life is all serious, I think you really should watch this one to release tension and you know, colour your life with imaginations. Because at the end of the day, the core message of the movie is to "belief in the impossible".